The Truth of Deception
by SunnyGirlTheSunster
Summary: What if Padmé had enlisted her husbands help against the Chancellor? How would that have changed the outcome of ROTS? What does Anakin have to do to keep his family from dying? PadméAnakin. R&R. No flames please.
1. Meetings

Each senator was quiet waiting for one of the others to speak. They all knew what they were about to do was treason and that they were risking their lives because of it. But none of them could stand to watch the republic they had all worked so hard for, fall farther from grace than it already had.

Padmé Amidala Skywalker sat in the middle of a white sofa surveying her hands. She had offered to host this meeting even though she had the most to lose. Her mind reasoned that it was worth it, and that a galaxy without freedom was no place to live, but her body said otherwise. The child within her wanted to live, and the instinct that made her its mother was willing to do anything to insure her baby's survival.

"You are probably wondering why I called this meeting with the six of us." Mon Mothma finally spoke up. All the other's attentions turned to her immediately and they remained transfixed on her downcast eyes. "The answer is simple." She smiled slightly and Padmé internally noted that it made her look younger. "I don't know who else to trust." She turned to her handbag beside her and pulled out several papers. "The Chancellor had released another amendment this morning. One that is uncannily thin and is easily lost in other paper work. I've brought copies, as you can see, and I think you will find it equally disturbing."

There were several moments filled with the rustling of papers and the small gasped that escaped the mouths of the esteemed officials. Padmé only half read what she was given and her own mouth hung open loosely.

"No..." Bail Organa exhaled slowly. He turned from Mon to Padmé and back again as if looking for some sort of explanation from his two best senate friends. Both women just cast their eyes back down to the papers in front of them. "This gives him full rights of

the military at all times!" Bail exclaimed. "This can't be right. When is the vote?"

Mon grimaced. "In one week."

This caught Padmé by surprise and she gasped, "One week?" She felt herself become passionate about her work and she looked defiantly at everyone around her. "No one will have time to decide, let alone read and discuss, in one week." She felt her face get flustered at her outburst and she calmed down slightly but held the intensity in her voice. "Not with all the larger issues of was and the separatists." She lowered her voice considerably, "He's doing this on purpose to distract the senators."

The senators nodded and Mon mumbled, "It would appear so."

Giddean Danu shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "One week is not enough time to raise a petition or any type of defense against this law. I believe this is the final straw."

Fang Zar grunted his agreement. The old man looked tired in Padmé's eyes, and his skin seemed to hand limply from his body. Padmé had a sudden erg to cook for all of her friends. Force knows, if she didn't have the baby in her making her eat, she would have been just as pail and worn as the rest of them.

"The republic is not designed to have this much power at its tip," Fang told them solemnly. "We have already seen the damage Palpatine's corruption is causing."

Shea Sadashassa, who had been quiet up until this point, nudged Padmé with her knee. She had always been a very quiet Senator and one of Padmé's greatest friends. She was known for her loyalty and her honestly and Padmé respected her greatly. "Would it be alarmist to ask if..." She paused and collected her thoughts. "Would the Jedi be able to protect the civilians if so many clone troops turned against us? I'm not suggesting the Chancellor would do such a..." She paused again and shrugged. "Actually I am."

"The Jedi have limited numbers," Padmé said forlornly. "Even if they could defend Coruscant...They could not defend the entire galaxy if it ever came to that."

"I fear it had come to that!" Mon exclaimed and Giddean put a hand on her for comfort. "This amendment could be the demise of this republic."

Bail nodded. "One thousand years of peace..." He crumpled the paper in his hand and threw it to the table in between the two couches. "He cannot stay in office."

Giddean winced. "I for one fear what would happen if he wasn't removed peacefully."

Fang sighed and stood up. He was not impressive in height, but his maturity and age gave him the authority in the room. "Removal is a very complicated process, Senator Danu." Giddean nodded. "And when you're as old as I am, you realize that sometimes 'peaceful' is always as option."

Padmé gasped at what he was implying. "We cannot be behind a plot against his life." She looked around wildly and unconsciously moved her hands to cup her stomach. "Even if he is overstepping his bounds… that would be high treason. I will not risk that." Her eyes pleaded with all her comrades but their faces told her they were not on her side in this argument. She tried a different tactic. "We would do the people no good if we, as their representatives, were locked away instead of helping them."

"The Chancellor is the most powerful man in the galaxy, Padmé." Bail said softly, though his tone was cold. "He defines treason. What we're doing right now...just speaking...is considered high treason. He instated that. Or have you forgotten?"

"I haven't forgotten." Padmé relented. There was a moment of silence where they watched the young woman struggle with her thoughts before she looked up and nodded to each of them, signaling her acceptance of what they said.

"Let us go to the Jedi," Giddean said finally.

"I thought of that as well," Mon dismissed. "But after their recent rescue of the Chancellor, I have reservations for which side they are on."

"Perhaps one that is not on the council," Shea supplied.

Padmé's ears perked up and she smiled dreamily at the thought of her husband. And before she could stop herself or ponder at why it might be a bad idea, she said; "I know someone."

Anakin Skywalker was enjoying himself immensely. It was one of those rare occasions where he was assigned a mission with his former master, and though he would not admit it, he had missed those. Of course when Obi-wan Kenobi had told the young jedi knight that their mission was on the other side of Coruscant, Anakin jumped at the chance to drive.

Obi-wan reluctantly let him do so, but was regretting it more and more with each passing second. "Watch out!"

Anakin expertly dodged the oncoming traffic as he went along. The speed of the vehicle was calming his mind and he glanced over at Obi-wan's terror stricken face with gentle amusement.

"Is something wrong, Obi-wan?" He smirked and focused his eyes back on the path ahead where he swiveled around a building and then a train.

"Your infuriating sometimes, did you know that?" Obi-wan said through clenched teeth. "I hate flying almost as much as I hate Sith." He gripped the seat of the speeder as Anakin took them straight down. "Sith!"

"Sorry, Obi-wan."

"You did that on purpose." His former master grumbled. Anakin smiled.

"It's part of my charm." And both he and Obi-wan laughed a little. It was true that Anakin had been less conceited then normal, lately. And his comments referring to himself were more for humor, lately, than show. "And besides…this is the only place I can talk to you."

"On a mission?" Obi-wan asked curiously.

Anakin should his head. "No. In a speeder." He maneuvered around several lanes of traffic that he felt were unnecessary and went into another dive for a tunnel.

"Now that we're racing at immeasurable heights and speeds, why don't you tell me something?" Anakin raised an eyebrow. "Well you did say you wanted to talk, didn't you?" Obi-wan reasoned. Anakin smiled mischievously.

"What's between you and Master Tachi?"

"What's between you and Senator Amidala?"

The conversation stopped and didn't resume for the rest of the ride.


	2. Discovery

Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to Star Wars or the characters or anything like that…and this disclaimer extends to the previous chapter because I completely forgot about it before.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Anakin and Obi-wan arrived to their destination only to find that the people they'd been tracking had already left. But they were not completely surprised, as it was a more and more common occurrence. Somebody must have tipped them off.

The dealers who they'd been following were specifically known for black market babies, and so Anakin was more unnerved that they were missing than he ever would have let on. When he and Obi-wan had left the temple, they had been given only minimal information. Anakin suspected the council knew more, though, and he planned to investigate that on his own later. They didn't seem to trust him, and that was a great source of his anger.

The first thing both Jedi noticed when they entered the room was the dim lighting and the many cradles that lay haphazardly placed on the dirty floor. Anakin thought of his own child briefly and fought the emotions that threatened to rise in his throat. He could not risk Obi-wan sensing his weakness.

"How did they know we were coming?" Anakin wondered aloud as he picked up a small blanket on the floor. There were small droplets of blood on the corner and Anakin threw it down quickly. "Who would do something like this?" The young man's mind was telling him with increasing clarity to get Padmé off of the city-planet. He knew, though, that she wouldn't listen, and he dismissed the idea almost as soon as it came. "Obi-wan?"

But Obi-wan wasn't listening. Instead the master Jedi was crouched over a small desk on the other side of the darkened and dank room, looking on with horror at several small objects. "Sith!" He swore.

"What is it?" Anakin asked while striding over to his former master. Obi-wan shook his head and gestured towards four small needles on the desk. They were specific in shape and Anakin had the feeling that he had seen them before. "What are those?" His tone had dropped significantly and his eyes were hardened as his mind started recognizing them.

"These needles are specifically made to measure the force sensitivity in...well...children." Obi-wan backed away slowly with a pained expression across his face. "We must inform the council." He turned to leave and motioned for Anakin to follow, but the younger man stopped him.

"You go." Anakin said. "I'm going to continue tracking these merchants, and try to figure out why they would want to measure force sensitivity in their black-market trade." The Jedi knight shuddered briefly as the unspoken word 'baby', caught his mind. What would they want with babies? "I will catch them, Obi-wan."

Obi-wan nodded. "I never had any doubt." And with those parting words, the older of the men left and Anakin resumed his search for clues in the room once used for smuggling babies. For several minutes he didn't find anything, and his own frustration led him to using the force to smash the desk where Obi-wan had found the needles.

What Anakin discovered surprised him. Six medical coats used by doctors at the main hospital in Coruscant, identifiable because it said as much on the label. When he had smashed the desk he had made a hole in the wall where they had been stored.

So that was how they were taking the infants...by posing as doctors. It sickened Anakin greatly. Especially since Padmé had made it clear that she wanted to give birth at that very same medical center. He would have to talk her out of that.

He unceremoniously dropped the coats he had pulled from the wall when he saw something that genuinely scared him. Passes. Six of them. Diplomatic passes to all important buildings; including the Senate and the Jedi temple. He collected them and placed them in a pocket deep in his robes. Both the council and the Chancellor would have to see this. It was a matter of security for the entire galaxy. These black-market traders were clearly posing as officials and could jeopardize the safety of everyone around them. Without hesitation he pulled out his comlink and contacted Obi-wan.

"Anakin," Obi-wan's voice said, somewhat distorted. "Have you found something already?"

"They have medical coats to the hospital and security access to all high rank buildings on Coruscant," Anakin said in a rush. "How far away are you?" He knew that Obi-wan didn't have to come back and work with him, but Anakin trusted his former master's ability to piece things together and see things that he often overlooked.

"I'll be right there." Obi-wan stated recognizing the seriousness of the situation from his former padwan's tone of voice. Anakin nodded mutely looking at the room around him. "Give me ten minutes." If Anakin had been anywhere else he would have chuckled. It took Obi-wan ten minutes to cross the distance Anakin covered in two. "Wait..." Obi-wan's voice came over the link as Anakin was about to put it away. "Don't do anything rash, Anakin." The warning was said out of habit, mostly. Obi-wan, though he never told Anakin to his face, trusted the young man with his life.

"I won't," Anakin assured. And in an afterthought he added, "Unless it's necessary." He figured his former master agreed with him, as he remained silent in the devise that allowed them to talk.

"Are you sure you trust this Jedi?" The question came at Padmé from both Mon and Bail who wore identical suspicious looks on their faces.

"Yes." She stated calmly. "I trust him with my life." A part of her reeled with that comment and she suddenly realized how true it was. Sure, she had placed her life in Anakin's hands before, but somehow stating it to outsiders made it more real. She relaxed back into her couch with the sudden comforting notion that she trusted her husband entirely.

Fang's voice brought her out of her thoughts, "Then why won't you tell us his name?"

"His name is not the necessity in this situation," Padmé replied. "Only that he can help us."

Shea shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry if we don't respect that opinion, Padmé," She said to her friend. "This is a very sensitive issue for all of us, and we need to know who we are relaying this information to." She looked around and gestured to the other senators in the room with her hand. "We are grateful that you shared your home for our meeting and we trust you in that respect...But forgive us if we need to know the face behind the Jedi who will contain the knowledge of our treason." She looked Padmé dead in the eye. "You would want to know the same."

"Of course," Padmé accepted. She knew, while she could keep her marriage to Anakin a secret, she could not keep the galaxy from knowing she knew him. They had already shared far too much publicity together, but somehow her colleagues knowing that they were still in contact, bothered her.

"And are you sure the Jedi is not in league with the Chancellor?" Mon asked suddenly. Her eyes clouded with fear. "There are many people who are more than happy to be his eyes and ears in the senate and otherwise. How do we know that this Jedi is not as enamored by him as the rest of the republic?"

"He isn't." Padmé stated defiantly. "He would have told me if he was close to the Chancellor. I've known them both for some time now. Palpatine used to be senator when I was Queen."

"We know, Padmé," Shea said calming her. "We just want to be sure. Mon is right…you can never be too careful, nowadays." The other senators nodded and there was a small silence as they all contemplated the truth of her words. It was getting harder and harder to find people they could trust…especially on the capital.

"Who is it?" Giddean asked. "Who is the Jedi who can help us?" All eyes again turned to Padmé and she shifted slightly. Was it worth it for the rumors that had been circulating after Geonosis to start up again?

"Jedi Skywalker." Padmé relented. Bail's eyes widened as he took in the new knowledge and Padmé knew even without looking at him that he was suspicious. But before he could say anything Fang Zar once again stood up and commanded authority.

"Senator Amidala," Padmé winced at the formal name. They had all been on a first name basis for a while now, and the fact that Fang addressed her formally could only mean that he was strictly apposed to the idea. "You cannot suggest that we relay our thoughts to the poster boy of the order, can you? The one and only who saved the Chancellor himself from General Grievous not one month ago? Not him..." He looked around with a pained expression. "Anyone but him..."

Mon nodded appreciatively. "He is far to close with the Chancellor. Anyone who's looked has seen it. We would be jeopardizing everything. There has to be someone else."

Padmé sighed. She could have guessed that was coming. "I know I'm asking a lot, but please..." She adopted a more regal voice and went on. "This is not just our lives we're looking after. Naboo cannot afford to be overrun by clones. I will not stand by and watch as my people panic and die…It is my home, just as I know your planets are yours."

"Do you honestly think Jedi Skywalker can help us," Bail asked. There was no judgment in his voice and Padmé nodded. Bail sighed. "If you trust him, Padmé. So do I."

Again Padmé nodded. "I trust An-," She almost said his name but stopped herself. "I trust Jedi Skywalker with my life... and my secrets. He will not betray us."

"For our sake, I hope you are right," Mon stated lightly, but the warning behind her words was not lost.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I hope you like the second chapter. I'm still setting up the plot, but the chapters should get longer as the story picks up. R&R. Thanks!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Konig15: Thank you for your review. And I'll be sure to add that in. Thanks for the suggestion, I really appreciated it.

great goddess of the cows: Thank you for your review. And yes, Obi-wan will face some sort of embarrassment in relation to Siri. I'm looking forward to writing that part. I haven't exactly figured out what kind of embarrassment though…

ILDV: Thank you for your review.

Tag des Todes: Thank you for your review. Sorry about the confusion. I hope it's fixed in this chapter. It was my first time uploading and I wasn't sure how to do the separation thing. Thanks for letting me know.

J.L.: Thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked that part. It was fun to write.

Katie: Thank you for your review.

Darth-Taisha: Thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked it.

Vila Restal: Thank you for your review. I'm glad you thought it was interesting. I hope it's not too boring.

Jedi Master Arie Skywalker: Thank you for your review. I'll be sure to update. I hope you like this chapter.

G-Anakin13: Thank you for your review. I'll definitely write more.

Mr.Sparrow: Thank you for your review. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter, I'll be sure to write more.

CherryBlossoms016: Thank you for your review. That's a very good question. I'm actually still trying to figure out where Anakin's loyalties lie in this fic.

Justin-Mullins: Thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked it and I hope you continue to like it. I'm glad you find it well written, I put a lot of work into my writing and I'm happy you saw that. Thanks again.


End file.
